Homebrew et al.

Blog about trying to make beer, good beer.

Tuesday, February 28, 2006

Brewed an all Amarillo Pale Ale, AG

I brewed my first IPA all grain beer. That is, I turned cracked seeds (grain) into a uber-sweet wort that is now sitting in a fermenter bubbling away. The ingredients were:

12 # 2 row pale malt
8 oz CaraPils
12 oz of Crystal 60

HOPS:
1 oz Amarillo (first wort hop)
2 oz " " (60 minutes)
1 oz (30)
1 oz (15)

The picture shows the mash-tun. Where the hot water is introduced to the grain so that the grain will release it sweet goodness. I batched sparged got a little bit less than 2 gallons on the first running (water at 165F and the bed was at 156F for 1 hour). I then sparged, rinsed the grains of the rest of their sugars, with 172F water (bed stayed at 156F) and ended up with 6 gallons of wort. After pouring the hot water on the grain bed (sparging) I mixed it really well, waited 10 minutes, then proceeded to drain the mash-tun (the cooler).

I took many cues from instructions posted on the web.

The OG was 1.050 (at 100F) the corrected gravity is 1.056. I didn't check the gravity before the boil, so I am not sure I know my efficiency. From what I am told, batch sparging is pretty inefficient.

I used S-04 dry yeast, first time using dry yeast, and some WhiteLabs yeast nutrient. It is supposed to be like the whitelabs' english ale yeast.

It takes a bit more time but the getting the wort out is so rewarding.

Transfered hoppy IPA


I transfered the Hoppy IPA. This IPA has a lot of hops, about 7 ounces total. I transfered it today (OG = 1.062/FG = 1.016). I have always disliked wheat beers but when added as a part of a non-wheat, it really adds something to the flavor. I tasted the hydro sample and it is about the best flat, room temperature beer I have ever drank. This recipe was inspired by HBA's CJ's JPA recipe. I took some liberties with it, however.

Pictured is the mash-tun I built using an old cooler and excellent instructions. Going all grain, baby; all grain.

Thursday, February 23, 2006

Kegged the Bitter Sweet Milky Stout


The Stout ended its fermentation with a gravity of 1.018 (abv ~ 4.4%). I tasted the hydrometer sample and it was very good. I also kegged the IPA (abv ~6.3) about 5 days ago. I have forced carbonated all of the beers. I hit the IPA with 20 psi, the Stout (at room temp) with 35 psi, and the SOB is sitting pretty at 12 over the last week or so.

The stout is in the keg on the right, the IPA is center, and the SOB is on the left.

Very cool. Wish Saul was here.

Sunday, February 19, 2006

Brewed a hoppy IPA (2/14)

Maybe calling this the Valentine IPA wouldn't be such a bad idea. It had:

4# of light DME
3# Wheat DME
12 oz CaraVienna
4 oz. CaraMunich

N. Brewer served as the bittering hops (60 minutes)
Then I added a combination of Amarillo, Cascae, and Willamette every 10 minutes.

I pitched it onto the yeast cake of the English Yeast from the IPA. Didn't get as good of results this time and I don't think I'll try that again. I hear you can get a bunch of off flavors from doing that.

Finally I took a big step and am now a hardCore hobbyist. I have a 3 keg system with 5# cylinder. I force carb'd the Beligerent SOB (a Stone Brew clone). I haven't quite figured out the logistics of force carbing but as one CBMer told me, "It's not rocket surgery." That made me laugh.

Friday, February 10, 2006

Bitter Sweet Milky Stout cont.

I brewed the beer below tonight. Hopefully my slurry/yeast harvesting "trick" works to get this wort fermenting soon. Also, I cold - pitched the yeast at about 69F; ie, I added the slurry straight from the fridge into the wort. Should be good if it ferments okay. I'm going to go to AltBev in the morn to pick up some more dry yeast.

Bitter Sweet Milky Stout


Amount Item Type % or IBU
6.00 lb Dark Dry Extract (17.5 SRM) Dry Extract 75.0 %
0.50 lb Caramel/Crystal Malt - 60L (60.0 SRM) Grain 6.3 %
0.50 lb Chocolate Malt (350.0 SRM) Grain 6.3 %
0.50 lb Roasted Barley (300.0 SRM) Grain 6.3 %
1.00 oz Northern Brewer [7.00%] (60 min) Hops 25.4 IBU
1.00 oz Northern Brewer [7.00%] (15 min) Hops 12.6 IBU
1.00 oz Williamette [5.50%] (5 min) Hops 4.0 IBU
0.50 lb Milk Sugar (Lactose) (0.0 SRM) Sugar 6.3 %
1 Pkgs California Ale (White Labs #WLP001) Yeast-Ale


Beer Profile

Est Original Gravity: 1.057 SG

Measured Original Gravity: 1.010 SG
Est Final Gravity: 1.013 SG Measured Final Gravity: 1.005 SG
Estimated Alcohol by Vol: 5.8 % Actual Alcohol by Vol: 0.6 %
Bitterness: 42.0 IBU Calories: 43 cal/pint
Est Color: 33.2 SRM Color:
Color




















Age for: 28.0 days




Hoppy Amber bottled 2/10

I bottled the "HopBomb Jambalaya" brew and found that the pre bottled sample I drank tasted great. I realize now, after corresponding with SHTZ folks and reading Palmer's chapter on hops that my hop schedule made no sense but over all, I was lucky - this might be a pretty good bitter beer. The yeild were the cases of Paulaner and Victory (the guy at the liquor store set me up with his nicest boxes once I told him I needed them for homebrew), plus a 4 pack which I put in my brew closet/pantry.

The golden carboy is the 5 gal carboy that contained the "HopBomb Jambalaya;" dryhopped with Fuggles. After cleaning and scrubbing it out with my carboy brush I filled it with an Iodophor sollution.

Pitched Dry Yeast on the Bastard

In the nearest fermenting bucket is the both transfered and repitched new yeast in this beer. The story is that the gravity stalled out at about 1.022. I transfered it and got it off its yeast cake (trub - pronounced troob) and repitched US-56 by Fermentis dry yeast. With the yeast cake I poored about 24 oz of cooled boiled water over it, swirled the bucket and then poored those into four washed and sanitized (via Star San solution) glass jars; each has about 1.5 cups of slurry in each jar. I am hoping to re-use this yeast slurry (WLP-001/California Ale). Further, I hope to get the gravity of the Bastard ale down to about 1.010 or the mid teens would be great.

Friday, February 03, 2006

English IPA


Brewed an English IPA tonight. I utilized a new method and recycled my yeast from the Hoppy Amber after I transfered it. After I racked the Hoppy Amber I quickly dumped a new wort onto the Amber's yeast cake. (It's already bubbling. I also added a yeast nutrient, not servo.)

I used some very cool hop combinations; 1 cup of Amarillos at 60, 1 cup each of Amarillos and Northern Brewer at 15 and 1 cup of Willamettes at 5. I'll be sure and dryhop this with cascades if I can get my hand on them. The original gravity was 1.064. If the gravity gets down to 1.010 I'll have a 7.13 ABV beer.

Hoppy Amber Brewed 1/28/06


I had some extras laying around and went ahead and brewed a "jambalaya" beer. They are:

4 # of light DME
1 # of amber dme
1 # of biscuit
1 # of special

1 oz of Centennials
3-.75 oz of K. Goldings


I added the Centennials at 60
Then the Goldings at 50, 40, and 30.

Brewed it up and boy is it a bitter wort. I had a pretty low gravity too (rechecked at 1.032). I hope that the bitterness will level out. I wondered if there were post boil additives (honey, maple syrup, etc) that I might use to level out the the hop bitterness but decided against them. I racked it today (2/2/06) and had a 1.008 gravity (ABV=3.14). I also dryhopped it with Fuggle type hop plugs which I initially made a hop tea by steeping the plugs in 165F water. I then stuffed the plugs and the tea into the secondary fermenter.